Air register



Oct. 11, 1960 Filed Oct. 15, 1956 E. F. STEFFNER AIR REGISTER 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 lob FIG.4

23;; 23a 23g 23h INVENTOR EdwardF. Sfeffner ATTORNEY Oct. 11, 1960 E. F. STEFFNER 2,955,525

AIR REGISTER Filed Oct. 15, 1956 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG.5

H0 24 24! 24h 24g H9 I22 239 23h 5i 3 23m Edward F. Sieffner BY A1.

ATTORNEY INVENTOR Filed Oct. 15, 1956 I E. F. STEFFNER AIR REGISTER 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 I22 ah 23i 23; 23k 2 F l (5.9 m

INVENTOR Edward F. Steffner ATTORNEY 2,955,525 AIR REGISTER.

Edward F. Stelfner, Cleveland, Ohio, assignor to The Auer Register Company, Cleveland, Ohio Filed on. 15, 1956, Ser. No. 616,098 3Claims. or. 985408 eter type.

For many years it was the usual practice in forced warm air heating systems to provide the air registers at inside walls of the building. Various types of registers were designed for use with such heating systems which had suitably arranged deflectors for directing. theair out into the room to be heated. The recent advent of perimeter forced warm air heating systems, in which the air registers are located' at outside walls of the building, has imposed new requirements which are not satisfiactori ly met by such registers. In a perimeter heating system it is desired to keep the outside walls heated, and for. a forced warm air system of this type this is best accomplished by providing a continuous, evenly distributed blanket of warm air over inner side of the outsidewall.

' The previously used warm air registers are not capable thereby insuring optimum operation of the perimeter-j type forced warm associated. Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide air heating system with which it is a novel and improved air register which is particularly adapted for use with perimeter-type forced warm .air heating systems. I g

It is also an object of this invention to provide an air register of novel construction which enables the register to provide a substantially continuous and evenly distributed blanket of warm air across the wall on which it is mounted. V 7

Another object of this invention is to provide a novel air register which is especially well suited for use with combined forced warm air heating and forced air cooling systems of the perimeter type.

' Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following-detailed description of certain preferred embodiments of the invention, which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings: I

Fig. 1 is a front view of one embodiment of the present air register; 7 V V Fig. 2 is a section taken along the line 2-2 in Fig. 1; Y

Fig. 3 is a section taken along the line 3-3 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a section taken along the line 44 in Figs. 1, 5 and 8; a 5

Fig. 5 is a front view of a second embodiment of this invention; 1

Figs. 6 and 7 are sections taken along the lines 6-6 and 77, respectively, inFi g. 5;

t Fig, 8 is a front view of still' another .air register embodying the principles of this invention; and

' ward from the register.

Patented Oct; 11, 1960 Fig. 9 is a section, on an enlarged scale, taken along the lines 9-9 in Fig. 8.

Referring to Figs. 1-4, the air register is in the form of a plate 10 which is rectangular in outline and which has a flat top marginal portion 11, side marginal portions 12 and 13, and a bottom marginal-portion 14. The plate has a rearwardly projecting flange 10b at the lower edge of its marginal portions. The side marginal portions 12 and 13 are formed with apertures for receiving screws 15 and 16 for mounting the diffuser on an outer wall of the room at the air outlet thereat. The top, bottom and side marginal portions are coplanar; Inwardly of these marginal portions the plate 10 is depressed rearwardly a slight amount to provide a flat central panel 10a.

Directly above its bottom 'marginal portion 14 and midway between its sides, the plateis formed at panel 10a with a series of rearwardly and downwardly inclined horizontal deflectors 17, which are disposed one above the other to provide a series of vertically displaced air outlet openings which direct air upward and for- The inclination of the deflectors 17 is shown in Fig. 2.

Directly above its horizontal deflectors 17, the panel 10a presents a solid portion 18 which extends vertically up to the top marginal portion 11. The solid portion 18 is formed with a narrow vertical opening 19 which receives.

the operating handle 20 for the usual pivoted baflle (not shown) at the back of the dilfuser. As best seen in Fig. l, the solid portion 18 is substantially shorter in the horizontal direction than the openings at the deflectors 17.

At theright side of horizontal deflectors 17 in Fig. 1 the panel 10a is formed with a first series of vertical deflectors 21 which are spaced apart horizontallyfand vertical openings which direct air outward to the right in Fig. 1. The deflectors 21 have their lowerends spaced a very short distance above the lower marginal portion 14. The innermost deflector 21 is positioned closely adjacent the right ends of the horizontal deflectors17, while the outermost deflector 21 is located closely adjacent the marginal side portion 13. a a

At the left side of horizontal deflectors 17 in Fig. 1 the panel 10a is formed with a series ocf similarly positioned, oppositely directed, ver-ticaldeflectors 22, which are inclined rearwardly and inwardly from the front face of the panel. The deflectors 22 provide a series of horizontally spaced openings which direct air outward to the left in Fig. l.

At theright side of the panel 10a in Fig. 1 is located a first series of concentrically disposed arcuate deflectors 23a23m disposed above the vertical deflectors 21. The arcuate deflectors 23a-23m are inclined rearwardly and inwardly, as best seen in Fig. 4. The deflectors r 23a-23j in this series have their lower ends terminating just above the upper ends of the deflectors 21 and inalignment therewith. These arcuate deflectors curve upwardly and inwardly from their lower ends. The innermost deflectors 23a-23g in this series extend through 90 arcs and terminate at their upper ends at the solid portion 18 at the middle of panel 10a and are disposed there in a vertical series directly above the right ends of the horizontal deflectors 17. The remaining outwardly positioned arcuate deflectors 23h-23m terminate at their upper ends in closely spaced relationship to the .,.inner edge of the top marginal portion 11 of the plate.

The outermost arcuate deflectors 23k, 23l and 23m terminate at their lower ends closely adjacent the side marginal panel 13 in progressively spaced relation above the I outermost vertical deflector 21.

A second series of concentrically disposed arcuate deflectors 24a-24m is similarly positioned at the left side of panel a. Each of these deflectors is inclined rearwardly and inwardly.

In operation, the above-described register is mounted at an outside wall of a room so as to extend vertical, or substantially so. The deflectors 11 direct air upward and outward at the middle of the register. The vertical deflectors 21' and 22 direct air outward to, either side and the warm air which is so directed by these deflectors also tends to flow upward across the wall. The arcuate diffusers 23a23m and 24a-24m, respectively, cause concentric arcuate flows of air outward to either side and upward. Because the. arcuate deflectors at their upper, inner ends overlie the horizontal deflectors 17 and at their lower ends "overlie the vertical deflectors 21, 22, the overall air flow pattern from thepresent register produces an extremely even distribution of air symmetrically about the register, with no regions of excessive air concentration and none of unduly low concentration.

In the Fig. I register, each of the deflectors extends from the back of the register to the front at angle within the range from 20 to 35 to the plane of the front panel 10a. This particular angular disposition of the deflectors is of vital importance to the successful operation of the present register in conjunction-with perimeter-type forced warm air heating systems.

In this connection it should be noted that previous warm air registers had their deflectors at angles of 45 or greater to the front face of the register. While this may be satisfactory for forced warm air heating systems in which the registers are mounted on inside walls and are intended to direct warm air out into the room, it is not well suited for forced warm air heating systems of the perimeter type.

In the present register the smaller inclination of the deflectors with respect to the front of the register has the effect of increasing the resistance to air flow presented by the register. Accordingly, air pressure builds up at the back of the register and this insures that sufficient air will flow out through all of the openings in the register. Due to the natural tendency of warm air to'flow up, in the absence of this increased resistance presented by the register the air would tend to follow the path of least resistance and flow readily out through the horizontally disposed deflectors at the middle of the register, with very little flowing out through the openings at either side. In the present register, the angularity of the deflectors has the effect of restricting the air flow at the middle of the register and forcing sufficient air out through the side openings so as to substantially completely blanket the wall at which the register is located.

In addition, this small angularity of the deflectors causes the air discharged from the register to hug the wall at which the register is mounted and not to .be directed out into the middle of the room, as with previous registers.

Smoke tests on the present register show that the warm air discharged from the register is substantially evenly distributed across the wall at which the register is located, with no areas where the air concentration is excessive and none where the air concentration is unduly low. This warm air blanket tends to hug the wall to such an extent that a person two feet from the wall would not notice the warm air flow from the register.

When the inclination of the deflectors is greater than 35 these desirable effects are lost to a large extent. I

When the inclination of the deflectors .is less than about 20 the register provides excessive resistance to air flow and thereby imposes an undue load on the blower, so that to achieve the desired results. would require a blower installation that is not considered feasible.

Insome instances, satisfactory operationmay beobtained if only the middle deflectors .17 areinclined at 2035, the other deflectors being disposed at angles greater than 35 to the front of the register. In such a construction, the deflectors 17 would impose substantial resistance to air flow up from the middle of the register, which would normally be the path of least resistance, and thereby force air to flow out to the side openings in the register, as well.

Another embodiment of the present invention is shown in Figs. 5-7. Here the register has top, side and bottom marginal portions 111-114, respectively, and a slightly rearwardly depressed central panel a. At the middle of this panel is a solid portion 118 which extends up from the bottom marginal portion 114 to the top marginal portion 111. Near its upper end the solid middle portion 118 of panel 110a is formed with an opening 119 for receiving the operating handle (not shown) for the usual pivoted baflle at the back of the register.

At the right side of the solid middle portion 118 and just-above the bottom'm arginal portion 114 is located a first series of vertical deflectors 121, which are spaced apart horizontally away from the middle of the register. Each of these deflectors extends-up approximately onehalf the height of panel 110a and each projects back from panel 110a. inward toward the middle of the register at an angle of 2035 to the plane of panel 110a. The vertical deflectors 121 define openings for directing air out to the right of the middle of the register.

Directly above the innermost vertical deflectors is located a "vertical series of horizontal deflectors 122, each of which projects back from panel 110a and down at an angle 2035. These horizontal deflectors define openings for directing air up from the register.

To the right of the horizontal deflectors is a series of arcuate deflectors 23a23m identical to the correspondingly designated deflectors in Fig. 1. The deflectors 23a-23g in this series have their upper ends disposed one above the other and closely adjacent to, and aligned with, the horizontal deflectors 122. At their lower ends the arcuate deflectors 23a-23j in this series are connected to vertical deflectors 123a123j, which are smooth continuations of these arcuate deflectors. The vertical deflectors are positioned in succession outward from the middle of the register. Each projects back from panel 110a and inward toward the middle of the register at an angle of 2035 to the plane of panel 110a.

The left side of the Fig. 5 register is a mirror image of the right side and need not be described in detail.

If desired, the arcuate deflectors 23a-23j at their lower ends may be separated from the upper ends of the vertical deflectors 123a-123j by a solid portion of the panel, as in Fig. 1. In that case, a similar construction would also be provided at the left side of the register. This modified construction of the Fig. 5 panel may be considered preferable from the standpoint of structural rigidity and strength.

A third embodiment of the present invention is shown in Figs. 8 and 9. This register has top, side and bottom marginal portions 211-214 and a rearwardly depressed central panel 210a. The deflector arrangement is identical to the upper half of the Fig. 5 register, except for the provision of an elongated horizontal deflector 230 which extends across the bottom of panel 210a at the middle of the register. Deflector 230 extends back from panel 210a down at angle of 2035. At opposite ends it terminates adjacent the lower ends of the innermost arcuate deflectors 23a and 24a, respectively.

Both of the deflectors of Figs. 5 and 8 have the advantageous mode of operation which is characteristic of the Fig. l deflector, discharging a substantially uniform and continuous blanket of air which covers the wall at which the register is mounted, primarily due to the particular angular disposition of the deflectors.

Theiregister of thepresent invention also is quite well adapted for operation with a forced air cooling system. The perimeter location of the register and the upward and laterally outward directions of the air flow make it particularly advantageous for use with such cooling systems. The resulting blanket of cool air across the inside of an outer wall of the room provides an extremely effective and eflicient cooling eifect. Accordingly, the present register is ideally suited for use with combined forced air heating and cooling systems in which the same air ducts are used for warm air in winter and cool air in summer.

While there have been described herein and illustrated in the accompanying drawings certain preferred embodiments of this invention, it is to be understood that various modifications, omissions and refinements which depart from the illustrated embodiments may be adopted without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention. 1

I claim:

1. An air register comprising a front panel having a plurality of air discharge openings therein defined by deflector means extending angularly inwardly from the panel, said deflector means including a first group of vertically spaced, horizontally disposed deflectors extending downwardly and inwardly from said panel and located in a vertically extending central band of the panel in the lower region thereof, deflector means disposed on both sides of a vertical center line of the panel and so arranged with respect to each other as to be symmetrically arranged in mirror image relationship to each other, each of such deflector means including arcuate deflector portions of longitudinally arcuate configuration disposed in concentric relationship serially with respect to each other and having their centers of curvature disposed at a common point in the lower region of the panel, each such deflector means also including vertically extending and horizontally spaced deflector portions aligned with and tangentially related to the lower ends of said arcuate portions and being arranged on both sides of said first group of deflector means, said first group of deflectors being angulated with respect to the front panel within the range between 20 and 35 so as to deflect air upwardly with respect to the front panel, said arcuate portions extending downwardly and inwardly from the panel at an angle to the front panel within a range of between 20 and 35 so as to direct air diagonally upwardly with respect to the front panel, and said vertical portions extending inwardly from said front panel at an angle within the range of between 20 and 35 so as to direct air laterally away from the panel.

2. An air register comprising a front panel having a plurality of air discharge openings therein defined by defiector means extending angularly inwardly from the panel, said deflector means including a first group of vertically spaced, horizontally disposed deflectors extending downwardly and inwardly from said panel and located in a vertically extending central band of the panel in the upper region thereof, deflector means disposed on both sides of a vertical center line of the front panel and so arranged with respect to each other so as to be symmetrically arranged in mirror image relationship to each other, each of such deflector means including arcuate deflector portions of longitudinally arcuate configuration disposed in concentric relationship serially with respect to each other and having their centers of curvature disposed at a common point in the lower region of the panel on a vertical line parallel to and spaced to one side of the vertical center line of the panel, each such deflector means also including vertically extending and horizontally spaced deflector portions effecting tangentially related continuations of the lower ends of said arcuate portions, which vertical portions are disposed in the lower region of the front panel on both sides of the vertical center line thereof, said first group of deflectors being angulated with respect to the front panel within the range between 20 and 35 so as to deflect air upwardly with respect to the front panel, said arcuate portions extending downwardly and inwardly from the panel at an angle to the front panel within the range between 20 and 35 so as to direct air diagonally upwardly with respect to the front panel, and said vertical portion extending inwardly from said front panel at an angle Within the range of between 20 and 35 so as to direct air laterally away from the panel.

3. The assembly as defined in' and by claim 2 wherein a third group of deflectors is disposed in the lower central region of the front panel on both sides of the vertical center line thereof, said third group of deflectors extending vertically and being horizontally spaced and being nested between the symmetrically arranged deflector means and below the first group of deflector means.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Glass Aug. 19, 

